Chocolate Sponge with Chestnut Cream

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 80 g sugar
• 80 g flour
• 2 tbsp Cornstarch
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 300 g chestnut purée (ready-made)
• 200 g mascarpone
• 80 g sugar
• 1 packet vanilla sugar
• 2 tbsp rum
• 50 ml milk
• 4 sheets white gelatin
• 100 g pre-cooked, peeled chestnuts
• 400 g whipping cream
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder

Instructions

1. 1.

   Separate the eggs. Preheat oven to 200 °C (conventional). Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, gradually adding sugar. Whisk yolks and fold into the meringue. Sift flour, cocoa, and cornstarch over the mixture and gently fold in. Spread batter in a parchment-lined springform pan and bake for about 20‑30 min. Remove, loosen the rim, cool the cake, then cut horizontally once.

2. 2.

   Soak gelatin sheets in cold water. Mix chestnut puree, mascarpone, sugar, vanilla sugar, and rum well. Dissolve drained gelatin in milk over low heat, whisk in 3 tbsp of the cream, then stir into the remaining mixture. Finally fold in whipped cream.

3. 3.

   Place a cake ring on one sponge layer, spread chestnut cream over it, and top with the second sponge layer. Press lightly and chill for 2 h until firm.

4. 4.

   For decoration whip cream to stiff peaks, fold in powdered sugar, and pipe around the cake. Use a star tip to create rosettes. Grate some chestnuts, dust with cinnamon, gently fold into the remaining cream, and spoon over the cake.